Developmental science perspectives on prejudice provide a fundamental and important window into determining how to reduce prejudicial attitudes and biases. Research with historically disadvantaged and advantaged groups in childhood and adolescence reveals that children are aware of status and hierarchies, often reject the status quo, and seek to rectify social inequalities. Challenging individuals and groups that exclude others, however, is costly. Facilitating positive cross-race and cross-ethnic interactions and friendships is a key to creating common ground and reducing "in-group vs outgroup" attitudes, which is a salient part of why prejudice forms in the first place. The negative consequences of experiencing prejudice and bias include depression, anxiety, and social withdrawal. Thus, intervention, to be effective, must happen early in development, before prejudice and stereotypes are deeply entrenched (and difficult to change) by adulthood.

Objectives:

1. Define what prejudice looks like in childhood, including explicit and implicit forms.Identify what changes from childhood to adulthood.

2. Identify the processes and factors that reduce prejudice and the role of intergroup contact.Be knowledgeable about the optimal conditions that enable intergroup contact to be effective in reducing bias. Become aware about the formation of group identity in childhood.

3. Become familiar with theories about fairness and social equality.Recognize how reasoning about fairness and equality in childhood is related to prejudice reduction.Understand the processes that facilitate children's understanding of fairness and the recognition of the value of social equality.

For more information about this event, please contact Caitlin Lyons at 3136642500 or ga2675@wayne.edu.